


Working to an Understanding

by Emanemmy12



Series: How Two Halves Become a Whole [4]
Category: Person of Interest (TV)
Genre: F/F, not that graphic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-19
Updated: 2014-12-19
Packaged: 2018-03-02 04:40:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2799932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emanemmy12/pseuds/Emanemmy12
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prompt: Shaw has a nightmare of Root dying and starts acting really overprotective of Root. Ooh! And a jealous and possessive Shaw would be nice as well.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Working to an Understanding

She slammed the man’s head into the bar and it gave a satisfying crack. Root turned, guns in hand and raised an eyebrow at Shaw. Sameen shrugged and let him drop to the floor. She shoved past Root and towards the door. She nodded her head to indicate that the next area was cleared and Root rolled her eyes. “I can handle it myself, Sam.” 

”Oh shut up.” Shaw then proceeded to forge on ahead. A small flash in her mind of her last nights dream startled Sameen and she was reminded of her need to go forth. It unsettled her as her mind shouldn’t have been wandering. There shouldn’t have been anything that distracted her from what they were going to do. It made her reach out and roughly pull Root back as she tried to push past, angry that thoughts of this woman in danger could possibly unnerve her. It was unprofessional and Sameen prided herself on never getting directed with extraneous things during a mission. Root gave a slight scoff at the manhandling, but Shaw paid her no mind. The number had gotten kidnapped by some wanna be gangsters. It had been a surprise enough that the men had decent firepower, but that had also meant that Shaw had to be cautious now. There was no way she’d let them get the jump on her twice. That would have been just embarrassing. 

Root leaned into her, dipping down to whisper directions into Sameen’s ear like she was whispering soft words to her lover. “They’ve got him held in the backroom. There are 5 men in total, two by the door and the others trying to get information from him.” Shaw nodded. The door that Root was talking about was down the stairs and luckily made it so their earlier encounters hadn’t alerted them to what was going on. Shaw silently moved forward, making sure she was in front of Root. It wasn’t an unnatural movement, Shaw was someone who naturally protected others, but this time it was a more conscious effort. She could remember seeing in her dreams, that bloody broken body. Sameen had dreamed of bodies before, that wasn’t knew, but this time was different. She had known immediately that it was Root. That the opposing forces that they battled day by day had finally gotten their hands on her. The only thing that had been recognizable had been Root’s hair and even that had been matted with blood. She had had to watch as the last breath left Root’s lungs and she could feel the other woman’s eyes staring at her, but she was frozen, unable to do anything. It wasn’t often that Shaw dreamed and even more rarely did it make her feel. But she had woken with her blood on fire. Anger, she was so good at anger. It had taken time to calm down and to remember that there was no reason that Root would end up like that. That morning had been silent and tense between them as Root didn’t know what was wrong and Shaw wasn’t about to tell her. She’d had to confirm that Root was still there, alive and well by roughly fucking her on the counter after breakfast. Even now she could still feel the red scratches on her back that reminded her that Root was not that image given to her by her brain. She wouldn’t let that happen. 

They had made it down to the bottom step and Shaw was lifting up her weapon when Root suddenly fired straight through the door. Shaw growled at the annoyance and hurtled forwards, opening the door and opening fire on the nearest person with a gun. The three men who had been torturing the number for information suddenly leaped into action, their own weapons coming up to fire, but not before Shaw had gotten two and Root the last. Sameen turned, checking to see if Root was hurt. “Sameen!” Root cried out and simultaneously raised her gun and fired. A man fell groaning in pain. Shaw blinked. He had obviously come into the room when their shooting had been heard, but she hadn’t noticed him, too focused on the count that Root had given her and the overwhelming urge to keep her safe. “Sam, you need to pay attention to your surrounding,” Root chastised as she moved forward, her eyes roaming up and down to make sure that Sameen wasn’t hurt. “Are you alright?”

”Yes, peachy,” came the instant reply. “Now what do we do with this guy?” Shaw gestured to the man tied to the chair. If she was concerned about not seeing an enemy, she wasn’t showing it. 

Root tilted her head and observed the man who was a sobbing mess in the chair. If you listened carefully you could make out the words “please don’t kill me” being repeated. “Well I suppose we can just leave him here. He’s certainly learnt his lesson about messing with the wrong people. The cops are on their way anyways. Everything that happens will be up to him, I suppose.” She gave a winning smile and holstered her two guns. Shaw nodded, still silent. Root pursed her lips and then she just hooked an arm through one of Shaw’s and pulled her away. She wanted to know what exactly was going on with Shaw, but here was certainly not the place to do so at all. Root sighed and quickly informed Harold that everything was under control and there were no casualties. He congratulated them and let them know that there was nothing else to do that night.

Root steered them to one of Shaw’s favorite bars. The nights were getting colder and as they walked in silence the two women were consumed with nearly similar thoughts. Root wanted to help Shaw while Shaw wanted to make sure that Root stayed safe. But neither said anything. To do so would be to change the game that they played. They never actually would admit to the other just how much they meant. For now it was about silently clinging in the hopes that the other wouldn’t leave. Their words were voiced by harsh kisses and touches that burned each other more often than they soothed. They were binary stars locked in orbit around the same mass of gravity, holding them together. They could only merge together in a shattering movement of utter chaos and destruction. It was inevitable that this could only end badly. Root looked over at Shaw. Her face was so shut down, locked in an expression that even Root couldn’t read. If there was a leading expert in what Sameen Shaw’s faces meant, it would have been Root. 

The bar was filled. It was a Friday night, so that was to be expected. Luckily the pair of them had been there enough that the staff knew better that to bot seat them in a reasonable time. They were both given their normal orders moments after they were seated. That’s when it began, the silent dance. Root wondering just how far she could go, what would she be allowed to say before Shaw shut her down. How much was she allowed to care before that was too much? She could feel the condensation on her glass drip onto her finger and Root shifted uncomfortably. After a mission as successful as this one had been, there was usually joyful banter and some undercurrent of connection that she had cherish. But here there was nothing. Shaw made no move to engage and that left Root without any way to get in. The silence was settling in darkly when a waiter appeared at the table. “Ah, excuse me, ma’am, but the gentleman over there wanted to send you this.” They placed a drink down in front of Root who turned where the waiter had indicated and a scruffy looking man gave an awkward wave. Root shrugged and turned back to Shaw. She wasn’t ever one to turn down a free drink. To her surprise, she was greeted by an even darker scowl on Sameen’s face. 

”Accepting drinks from scumbags now?” Shaw asked, the scowl not moving from her face. She couldn’t help but feel overlooked when Root accepted a drink when she was sitting right there. Didn’t Root know just how much thought that Sameen had given to her? How much she had worried? When worrying was so far from her nature? It was worse than if she had slapped Shaw in the face. 

Root tilted her head. “It doesn’t really matter where it comes from, it’s still free. What’s into you Sam? You’ve been acting strange since this morning.” Sameen didn’t say anything, but just shook her head. Root frowned and sat back. “Listen, Shaw, you can’t just say these things and just think you’ll get away with it” 

“I just don’t like it, ok? Why would you do that when I’m right here?”

”It doesn’t have anything to do with you. It’s a free drink. Honestly, Sameen, I don’t understand. Even if you don’t like it, I’m free to be my own person.” 

“No.” 

“Excuse me?”

”You aren’t free. If you were, you’d put yourself in danger even more. I can admit that our work is important, but there is a limit.” 

“I don’t see what this has to do with the drink.” 

“Well let me be absolutely clear then, Root.” Shaw shifted, sitting up and reaching over to pull Root into an angry kiss. She wasn’t sure why exactly she was doing this or what she was feeling, but this was what she felt was the best way to do it. Sameen bit down on Root’s lip until the tang of blood hit her tongue and then she released the other woman’s lips, but kept her close, hand pulling at the fabric of her shirt. It was probably painful, but Root merely looked at her as if this was a blessing from God. So Shaw continued. “You are not to accept drinks from other people. You are not to be captured. You are going to come back to me,” she ordered, her anger at the fact that Root didn’t already know this overcoming any impulses that she had to not say those words. Root nodded and smiled. 

”So you were worried about me? Is that what this was?”

Shaw rolled her eyes and shoved Root back to her side of the booth. “No. This way I can make sure Bear isn’t sad when you don’t come back for some reason.” It was a weak excuse, even for her. But that would have to do. Root understood and there was such a wide smile on her face that Shaw had to turn. The feelings were way to much to have to deal with. She would eventually, but for now, this was where they were. Root knew where she belonged. With Sameen. Not with any random stranger who couldn’t know her. 

That night when they happened to return home together, Shaw made sure to mark what was rightfully hers and for weeks there would be marks on Root that Harold would have to skillfully avoid looking at. There would be no more doubts that Root had to return to Shaw in the end. She was hers. It wasn’t that Shaw loved her. It was that it was the best arrangement. They didn’t have to pretend around each other and for weeks Root was out of flirty comments. That in itself was a win. Shaw didn’t ever have that dream again.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed!


End file.
